SSP Rate
The SSP rate is £123.25 a week — but that figure is a maximum, not a guarantee. Under the April 2026 rules, the amount actually paid is the lower of £123.25 or 80% of the employee's average weekly earnings, so anyone earning under about £154.00 a week receives less than the headline rate.
Rates: April 2026 rules — verified against GOV.UK. Last verified: 7 November 2026.
What is the SSP rate?
There are effectively two rates, and the employee always gets the lower of them. The first is the flat statutory rate: £123.25 a week. The second is personal to the employee: 80% of their average weekly earnings. The two meet at average earnings of £154.06 a week — earn more than that and 80% of your pay exceeds the flat rate, so you are capped at £123.25; earn less and the percentage figure is the lower one, so that is what you receive.
Whichever figure applies, it is a weekly amount. It is then shared across the employee's qualifying days to produce the daily rate that payroll actually pays for each day of sickness.
Why might my SSP be less than £123.25 a week?
The most common reason is the 80% rule. An employee earning £100.00 a week receives £80.00; one earning £140.00 receives £112.00. Nothing has gone wrong — the rules are designed so that lower-paid staff receive four-fifths of their normal pay rather than the flat rate. The other reason an individual payment can look smaller is that SSP is only paid for qualifying days: a part-week of sickness pays the daily rate multiplied by the days absent, not a full week. Our guide to SSP per week shows the weekly amount at a range of pay levels.
What is the daily SSP rate?
Divide the weekly amount by the qualifying days in the employee's normal week. At the full flat rate, a Monday-to-Friday worker receives £24.65 a day (£123.25 ÷ 5), while a three-day-a-week worker receives £41.09 a day (£123.25 ÷ 3) — a higher daily rate, but paid on fewer days, so a full week of sickness still comes to the same £123.25. If the 80%-of-earnings figure is the weekly amount, divide that figure by the qualifying days instead. The step-by-step calculation guide shows the full method.
Has the SSP rate changed under the April 2026 rules?
The headline figure is only half of the April 2026 story — the structure around the rate changed as well. SSP is now paid from the first full day of sickness, with no unpaid waiting days at the start of a spell. The lower earnings limit has been removed, so there is no minimum weekly wage an employee must reach before the rate applies to them. And the 80% -of-earnings alternative means the rate now flexes with pay instead of being one flat amount for everyone. The maximum entitlement remains 28 weeks per period of sickness.
When does the SSP rate change?
Statutory payment rates are normally reviewed once a year, with any new figures taking effect each April. Between reviews the rate stays fixed, so the figure on this page holds until the next uprating. Because a wrong rate quietly corrupts every calculation built on it, this site dates its figures openly: the rates here follow the april 2026 rules — verified against gov.uk and were last verified on 7 November 2026. If you are running payroll close to an April changeover, confirm the rate on GOV.UK before the first payment of the new tax year.
SSP rates at a glance
| Rule | Amount |
|---|---|
| SSP flat weekly rate (the maximum) | £123.25 per week |
| SSP alternative weekly amount | 80% of average weekly earnings — you get whichever of the two is lower |
| Paid from | The first full day of sickness — no waiting days |
| Lower earnings limit | None — there is no minimum earnings threshold |
| Maximum entitlement | 28 weeks in one (linked) period of sickness |
Rates: April 2026 rules — verified against GOV.UK. Last verified: 7 November 2026.
Work out your own SSP
Enter the employee's average weekly earnings and the days they normally work, and the free SSP calculator shows the weekly rate, the daily rate and the total payable — with the working shown.
Open the SSP calculator →More SSP guides
What is Statutory Sick Pay?
What SSP is, who pays it, who qualifies and how long it lasts — the plain-English starting point for UK sick pay.
Read the guide →How much is Statutory Sick Pay?
The weekly and daily amounts worked out: the £123.25 cap, the 80%-of-earnings rule, and what different workers actually receive.
Read the guide →How much is SSP per week?
Weekly SSP at different pay levels — a table of earnings and the weekly amount each one produces, for full-time and part-time workers.
Read the guide →How is SSP calculated?
The three-step calculation — weekly amount, daily rate, days payable — walked through step by step with worked examples.
Read the guide →Frequently asked questions
What is the SSP rate per week?
The headline SSP rate is £123.25 a week, but that is the maximum. The amount actually paid is the lower of £123.25 or 80% of the employee's average weekly earnings — so anyone whose 80% figure comes out lower receives that instead.
What is the SSP rate per day?
There is no single daily rate: it depends on the employee's working pattern. Divide the weekly SSP amount by the number of qualifying days in the week — a Monday-to-Friday worker at the full rate gets £24.65 a day, while a three-day-a-week worker at the full rate gets £41.09 a day, paid on fewer days.
Is the SSP rate before or after tax?
Before tax. SSP is paid through the payroll like ordinary wages, and income tax and National Insurance are deducted in the usual way. The £123.25 figure is the gross weekly amount.
Does the SSP rate depend on how many hours I work?
Not directly. The rate itself is fixed, but two things that flow from your job decide what you receive: your average weekly earnings (which set the 80% figure) and your qualifying days (which set the daily rate). Part-time workers use exactly the same rate — it is their earnings and days that differ.
Where can I check the current SSP rate?
The official rate is published on GOV.UK, and statutory rates are normally reviewed each April. This page shows the rate from the April 2026 rules with the date it was last verified, so you can see how current the figure is before relying on it.